sucked in

oil prices, axis of evil, war on terror, duct tape, traffic congestion, and my horrible driving have all fed into my ever growing obsession with bikes as an 'alternative' form of transportation. i'm a little hesitant with some of these buzz words like 'alternative' or 'green'. they come with political baggage that seems to hinder the learning process. i still try not to over use the word 'recycle' in front of some friends b/c they might flip out and call me a hippie communist.

so, as obsessions usually go, i killed the better part of the week planted behind my keyboard researching different kinds of bikes and trends: road bikes, mountain bikes, hybrids (bikes that aren't good enough for anything) single speed free wheels, conversions with flip-flop hubs, fixed gear conversions (or fixies as i have come to understand),... and the list goes on. even as i type this i'm straining my neck looking back and forth between my monitor and my other bike (a moderately priced khs) thinking, ' i can do that!' i can tear out the rear hub. i can cut and weld the frame! it's all nothing but blind optimism and boundless enthusiasm coupled with pure ignorance.